Canterbury Labour Councillors

30/10/2026

We're pleased to say that free parking will once again be on offer across Canterbury, Herne Bay and Whitstable to support shoppers and businesses in the run-up to Christmas.

Canterbury

Park and ride will be free at all three sites to motorists arriving from 2pm onwards on Friday 13 November for the city’s Christmas lights switch-on event. Buses will run to all sites until 9pm that evening.

For those staying in the city even later, people can catch ordinary Stagecoach services back to New Dover Road and Sturry Road.

The last Stagecoach bus to Sturry Road leaves the bus station at 11.15pm. The last Stagecoach bus to New Dover Road leaves the bus station at 11.35pm.

There is also free park and ride at all three sites all day on Sunday 29 November.

Herne Bay

There will be free parking all day in William Street car park on Sunday 22 November to support the town's Christmas lights event.

In addition, there will be free parking at William Street for resident permit holders only on Wednesdays 2, 9, 16 and 23 December. This offer will then continue on all Wednesdays until 17 March 2027.

Whitstable

There will be free parking from 4pm at Middle Wall and Gorrell Tank car parks on Saturday 28 November to support the town's Christmas lights event.

In addition, there will be free parking at Middle Wall and Gorrell Tank car parks for resident permit holders only on Thursdays 3, 10, 17 and 24 December. This offer will then continue on all Thursdays until 18 March 2027.

Cabinet member for parking, Cllr Paul Prentice, said: "Our free Christmas parking has been arranged to coincide with the district's key events and important shopping days in November and December.

"We've done this in previous years and feedback from businesses and shoppers has been really positive, so it's good news that we can do it once again.

"To take full advantage of the offer in the coastal towns, local people will need to get our residents' rate permit if they haven't already. This can be done quickly and easily with just a few clicks on our website.

"This permit already offers reduced rates for residents in various ANPR car parks and park and ride all year round, so it's a great thing to have anyway and the savings can really add up, particularly if you use these sites regularly.

"For people who prefer to use the bus or the train when taking advantage of the city and our coastal towns on these dates, we recommend planning journeys using the journey planners on the Stagecoach or Southeastern websites.

"And the Beryl Bikes scheme is also a handy way to get around the city too."

Sign up for the residents' rate permit on our website at canterbury.gov.uk/parking-and-roads/parking-permits/apply-residents-rate-parking-discount.

Currently there are 3,969 local residents signed up for this permit.

Stagecoach info: stagecoachbus.com/tickets
Southeastern info: southeasternrailway.co.uk/
Beryl Bikes info: https://beryl.cc/scheme/canterbury

28/10/2026

Canterbury district will once again mark National Tree Week with a series of special free walks and activities during November.

We have put together seven local events as part of the initiative, which was established by The Tree Council as a celebration of trees and kicks off the start of the winter tree planting season.

The events are as follows:

Friday 20 November, 10am to midday - guided walk around Gorrell Valley Nature Reserve, Whitstable

Sunday 22 November, 11am to 12.30pm - guided Walk around Larkey Valley Wood, Chartham

Monday 23 November, 10am to 1pm - tree planting at Gorrell Valley Nature Reserve, Whitstable

Monday 23 November, 10am to 11am - explore woodland management at Sturry Pit, Sturry

Tuesday 24 November, 10am to 11.30am - guided tour of the exotic tree collection at Canterbury Cemetery

Thursday 26 November, 10.30am to 12.30pm - guided walk around Canterbury's Old Park

Saturday 28 November, 11am to midday - guided tour of No Man’s Orchard, Chartham

Spaces for each of these events are limited and need to be reserved in advance via our Eventbrite page: eventbrite.com/o/13788250828

We are also pleased to be supporting a morning of tree-related family activities being organised by Whitstable Tree Wardens on Saturday 14 November - see all the details at eventbrite.co.uk/e/tree-care-family-tree-activities-at-mariners-view-orchard-seasalter-tickets-2003877372163

Cabinet member for the environment and open spaces, Cllr Mel Dawkins, said: "This is our second year supporting National Tree Week with some fantastic local events. Last year all the spaces filled up and we're hoping for more of the same this time round.

"November is a great time of year to be getting out and about in our nature reserves and woodlands, enjoying all those late autumn colours and embracing that nice pre-winter chill in the air.

"Come and join us and find out more about the wonderful environment right here on our doorstep."

National Tree Week's main aims are the mass planting of trees, combating climate change, enhancing biodiversity, community wellbeing and the long-term care of newly-planted trees.

Find out more about National Tree Week at https://treecouncil.org.uk/seasonal-campaigns/national-tree-week/

27/10/2026

Great initiative from Southeastern here to widen access to the Bayeux Tapestry to young people in the Canterbury district.

We’re delighted to announce that we will be providing 700 complimentary return train tickets so schoolchildren across Canterbury, and their accompanying adults, can travel for free to see the Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum.

This is truly a once-in-a-generation cultural experience, and we want to ensure that cost is not a barrier to young people seeing it.

By covering the cost of rail travel, we hope to help schools bring learning to life beyond the school gates.

This builds on our earlier scheme with schools in Hastings and Rother, which saw 1138 pupils travel to see the Tapestry, many of whom who might not have had the opportunity otherwise.

The success showed us that removing transport costs can open doors to educational opportunities and give young people the chance to engage first-hand with the history of their own region.

We are looking forward to creating more Bayeux memories for our communities.

16/10/2026

We are inviting residents and visitors to the district to take part in our travel choices survey. Have your say now – take a few minutes to complete the survey by 9am on Monday 26 October 2026. More information about the survey can be found below. Why this survey is

16/10/2026

09/10/2026

Help shape the future of local travel: tell us how you travel and what improvements you’d like to see by completing this very quick survey, which closes at 9am on 26 October.

How do you travel around the Canterbury district? 🚲🚗

Whether you drive, walk, cycle, catch the bus, or use a mix, we want to hear from you.

Take a few minutes to tell us how you travel, where you travel to and from, and your experiences getting around.

You don't need to be a district resident to have your say.

Your feedback will help shape the future of local travel.

Complete the survey by 9am on Monday 26 October 2026 via the link in the comments.

02/10/2026

Canterbury City Council is inviting everyone in the district to respond to the travel choices survey, and you can have your say now by taking a few minutes to complete the survey by 9am on Monday 26 October 2026.

In early 2026, the council published its draft Transport Strategy, alongside the Bus Action Plan, and the Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan.

We are now asking for more information about residents’ travel choices, to inform how these plans are implemented going forward.

We are keen to know:

- how you travel around the district
- where you travel to and from
- your experience of using buses in the district
- your experience of cycling and walking in the district

25/09/2026

Have your say 👇

Consultation on stage two of our Community Governance Review has begun and the public's views are welcome.

It is asking two main questions.

Should Herne Bay, Whitstable and surrounding areas have their own town or parish councils? They do not currently have one.

Are any changes needed to the parish councils in our rural areas?

Proposals have been put forward for a number of areas of the district.

Barham and Kingston
Blean
Chestfield and Swalecliffe
Chislet, Hoath and Reculver
Fordwich and Sturry
Herne Bay
Seasalter
Tankerton
Whitstable

You can read the proposals and a wealth of background information, and then give us your views via our survey, at https://news.canterbury.gov.uk/consultations/community-governance-review-stage-two-have-your-say-on-local-representation/

There are also details of public meetings taking place across the autumn.

The consultation closes on Thursday 17 December.

10/09/2026

Councillor Connie Nolan raised the concerns of both Dover and Preston village residents with the Police Commissioner at the Kent & Medway Panel this morning.

He's been urged to provide more transparency about the force's response

22/07/2026

LABOUR IS CAPPING BUS FARES FOR EVERYONE: From January all single bus fares will be capped at £2, cutting costs for millions.